spacex SpaceX Prepares to Launch First Certified Crew Mission for NASA SpaceX is ready to launch the Crew-1 mission for NASA, marking the first regular flight under its newly certified astronaut transportation system. This milestone officially shifts the historical arc of human spaceflight.
chang'e-5 Chinese Lunar Mission Returns Two-Billion-Year-Old Moon Samples China's Chang'e-5 spacecraft successfully delivers relatively young lunar rocks to Earth, opening a new window into the late history of the Moon and our solar system. The mission now continues as an extended technology test in lunar orbit.
china China Launches Chang'e-5 to Bring First Lunar Samples to Earth Since 1976 China successfully launches the robotic Chang'e-5 mission to collect and return moon rocks, marking the first lunar sample-return effort in 44 years. The complex spacecraft aims to gather about four pounds of material from the Oceanus Procellarum region.
nasa NASA Confirms Water on Sunlit Areas of the Moon NASA officially confirms the presence of water on the sunlit surface of the moon, a finding that could significantly impact future deep space exploration.
nasa NASA Telescope Detects Water Molecules on Moon's Sunlit Surface NASA's SOFIA airborne telescope confirms the presence of water on the sunlit lunar surface for the first time. The discovery in Clavius Crater suggests water is more widespread across the Moon than previously thought.
spacex SpaceX Achieves Second Successful Starship Prototype Hop Test in Texas SpaceX completes a 500-foot test flight of its SN6 Starship prototype, marking the second successful hop in under a month. These rapid iterations pave the way for future high-altitude and eventual orbital flights.
nasa NASA Astronauts Safely Splash Down in Gulf to Conclude Historic SpaceX Mission NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley successfully return to Earth aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, landing in the Gulf of Mexico. This splashdown marks the safe completion of a historic and highly dangerous final leg of their space station mission.
spacex SpaceX Crew Dragon Makes Historic Docking at International Space Station SpaceX successfully docks its first crewed Crew Dragon capsule at the International Space Station, marking the first time a commercial spacecraft carries humans to the orbiting lab.
nasa NASA Perseverance Rover Finds Potential Biosignatures in Martian Rock NASA's Perseverance rover unearths the closest evidence yet to past life on Mars, with validated results showing potential biosignatures inside a specific rock sample. The robotic explorer continues to collect core samples for eventual return to Earth.
nasa NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Exceeds Expectations With 72 Historic Mars Flights NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter completes a groundbreaking mission after achieving 72 flights on the Red Planet, far surpassing its original five-flight goal. The aircraft serves as a successful aerial scout and paves the way for future planetary exploration.
spacex SpaceX Crew Demo-2 Mission Update Showcases Historic Human Spaceflight SpaceX provides an update on the historic Crew Demo-2 mission, which marks a pivotal moment in commercial human spaceflight. The mission highlights the capabilities of the Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft.
nasa NASA Mars 2020 Mission Landing Details Remain Temporarily Offline The official NASA JPL press kit for the Mars 2020 mission landing is currently inaccessible due to a server blocking error. Visitors encounter a 403 error message when attempting to access the mission overview webpage.
nasa NASA Perseverance Rover Successfully Touches Down on Mars NASA's Perseverance rover completes its daring descent to the Martian surface to search for ancient signs of life. The mission marks a major milestone in deep space exploration.
nasa NASA Partners With NanoAvionics to Test Advanced Solar Sail Propulsion NASA selects NanoAvionics to build a satellite for testing a massive new solar sail that uses sunlight instead of fuel for propulsion. The technology promises to lower costs and enable long-duration deep-space missions.
artificial intelligence Twenty Bold Science and Tech Forecasts Shaping the 2020s Decade A new comprehensive report outlines twenty major scientific and technological milestones expected throughout the 2020s. These forecasts range from artificial intelligence achieving human-level capabilities to exciting new developments in space exploration and gene editing.